Frankfurt Proposals

I don't understand. Why did he reject the Frankfurt Proposals? Yes, he would have to give back Belgium but was it really worth it to lose the title of Emperor and be sent to Elba? Yes, I know he came back but he ended up fucking losing the same year anyway and had to live in some shitty house in the Atlantic for the last 6 years of his life. Was it really fucking worth it?

> What is Belgium worth?
> Nothing. [walks away]
> Everything!

He thought he could still win the war.

can you by any chance go further?

Was it in any way possible for him to win the war?

>Yes goy, we totally won't backstab you after you give up some lands.

Btw it would have been the natural borders of France so it's not about Belgium

No, but Napoleon was a stubborn motherfucker.

Not not really. He was delusional that the french population would support another total war like at the beginning of the Revolutionary Wars when in reality they just wanted peace at pretty much all coast.

But at that time all his advisers who had the balls to talk the hard truth to him, like Talleyrand or Fouche, had been driven away for ... well telling the truth.

He also planned for his marshals to hold the Rhine for half a year at least to allow him to rebuild his army, when in reality the beaten heavily outnumbered remains of the army was after Leipzig in no condition anymore to hold anything.

He should have tried to reframe the war along religious lines. Formed a catholic league with Austria.

Would Metternich really be retarded enough to take the bait?

Nope. Historical Rival modifier. You can't ally them.

It depends on how much the pope values having Poland under a Catholic or Orthodox regime, and Napoleon taking Charlegmane's crown seriously. Metternich could be bypassed if the power of mass religion could be harnessed.

France was already pushed back to the Rhine. Austria wanted to keep a strong France as a counterweight to Russia and without the Austrians the other coalition powers, who were indeed sceptical of the proposals, would've had a hard time subjugating France if they wanted to do so.

Talleyrand wanted to take the offer but Napoleon declined because he was a delusional retard who sucked at politics.

A still cant get it in my head that he refused an alliance with austria after he lost the Grand Armee in russia and after the spring campaign in germany at least an offer of austrian neutrality.

I mean, sure it sucks giving up germany and probably large parts of Italy, but if he cant handle the Russians and the whole situation in Spain is in free collapse, how the hell did he thought having another 100k+ Austrians against him is anything but the worst case scenario?

Metternich hated the Russians and saw them as a threat to european civilization and thus had done anything in his power to preserve France as a powerful force.

England wouldn't have gone with the proposal of Frankfurt so it does not matter. England wanted Antwerp and some other ports. If a country pays your entire war effort for 10 years you listen to them

>But at that time all his advisers who had the balls to talk the hard truth to him, like Talleyrand or Fouche
>Talleyrand or Fouche

Both fucking traitors that should have been hanged in 1804.

Talleyrand had been secretly working with the Austrians since forever and Fouche was probably giving Napoleon bad advice.

Napoleon asked if the Spanish would accept his conquering armies and his brother on the throne

Fouche said they would, while probably knowing differently.

He was beating the fuck out of them in 1814, not that it mattered anything that late but it was probably his finest campaign ever. Napoleon, personally won 18 battles always outnumbered and always short of supplies.

>England wouldn't have gone with the proposal of Frankfurt
Noone gives a fuck what England wants. Its not like they could do anything but sabotage the negotiations

Yeah it was a brilliant campaign, but completely meaningless because there was no way to stop them for good.
The same a year later, even if he had won at Waterloo, the largest alliance armies were going over the Rhine at the same time, the austrian army in italy and a spanish one in Spain was mobilizing with nothing to stop them at the borders and even if this was not overkill enough, a russian army was coming from Poland.

As it turns out, losing your main army two times in a row and having no popular support to continue the war makes it pretty difficult to face the rest of Europe united. THats why you should at all costs take the offer, when the guys who can field the largest army among your opponents wants to ally with you.

>Noone gives a fuck what England wants. Its not like they could do anything but sabotage the negotiations
Everybody gave a fuck about what they wanted, the UK supported every single allied member financially and that money not comming would mean destruction for Russia and Austria, not sure about Prussia

But the Frankfurt Proposal was put forward by the Sixth Coalition.
Nappy could have accepted it.

Napoleon thought of himself as the heir to Alexander and Caesar, and simply couldn't bring himself to accept terms of losing a war.

Absolutely not.

Napoleon didn't understand that Alexander hated his guts nor did he understand that Francis would fuck him over.

He was well aware of the struggle he faced after Leipzig but believed

1. France would guerilla for him like Spain did so well
2. If he could hold out or win a victory he could negotiate a better peace
3. At this point he was Alexander tier and signing the treaty meant losing everything; if he was killed in battle he could go out in style

He was actually winning in France at every turn in 1814. He got fucked over by politicians and his marshals. At this point Russians were so stretched for supplies if he could hold out a little more he might have been able to leverage a better deal.

I can't remember the exact details but only McDonald was loyal to the end.

He didn't lose the title of emperor. He was emperor of Elba.

Belgium is very important. Its a small 'neutral' country which basically makes it an untouchable trade point for England to sell shit to Europe. For example if France was hostile or Germany Belgium was still neutral and the UK had access to ports on the mainland without offending the French or Germans by 'owning' it. That's why they were so hostile to anyone threatening it. Vital economic interests.